KitKats and YooHoos

DQ Blizzards in the floorboards of Oldsmobile Cutlasses, Smurfs episodes in front of old space heaters, knee high panty hose and front clasp Cross-My-Heart bras, squeaky medicine cabinets and old blue bath mats, sun visors and rockin' chairs, "burn" plants and Big Wheels, Pat Sajak and Bob Vila, ajax dish soap and freezer burnt brunswick stew, honey buns, KitKats, and YooHoos, bible verses and gospel hymns, strength and beauty, humility and courage.

Mama Potts

June 13, 1920-November 30, 2008

Today I realized that the extent of my current exercise routine lies in the 12 steps it takes to get from the garage to the mailbox. Note to self: start walking soon.

Once I reached the mailbox and caught my breath this afternoon, I was greeted by the latest edition of my all time favorite "Taste of Home" Magazine. Hubs lives to find the hidden toothpick each month and I love to admire other people's initiative in the kitchen.

When I went to open this month's edition, a little post card fell out. My subscription has ended.

Mama Potts always bought my subscription each year.

It's been a year today since she found her wings on the other side.

I've been thinking about her so much lately. It's amazing how someone can have SUCH an impact on your life and leave footprints long after they pass from this world to the next.

Mama Potts' house was always FULL (well to be completely honest, infested) with ladybugs. It was one of the darndest things you ever had seen. The ceilings in her great room were covered with the tiny flutter winged creatures. He front porch was bathed in them. Her dining room windows were painted red and black with the little darlins. Try as she might, she just couldn't get rid of the things. She used to shoo them away and curse them under her breath. Funny, her being blind and all.

On Thanksgiving, two little pretty ladies planted themselves over the fireplace in my parents' kitchen.

This morning when I woke up, I went into Nolan's nursery to piddle around for a few minutes before work. I walked into his bathroom and saw a little speck on the side of the bathtub. What on earth is that? I moaned. I just cleaned you, you darn bathtub. Kick tub. Mumble. Groan. Make mental note to hire housekeeper upon winning the lottery.

As I walked over to the tub I saw the sweetest sight I've ever seen. A solitary red and black polka dotted little lady sat there staring back at me. At that very moment I realized that Mama Potts is still here, leaving her footprints long after exchanging her orthopedic shoes and support hose for angel wings and peep toe heels at the pearly gates.

I love you a heeeeeeap much, Mama Potts.

Wordless Wednesday: Thanksgiving Style

My Cup Runneth Over...

Many, many blessings.

Go back for seconds. Hug the ones you love. Laugh until your belly hurts. Happy Thanksgiving yall!

Buttermilk Pie and Swimmin Trunks

I bought Nolan Wyatt his very first swim suit tonight. I casually passed it by on the clearance rack at Babies R Us, spun around, and thought "what the heck, every new baby boy needs some swimmin' trunks". AND to make matters even better, it rang up $2.46. Box it up.

Nolan Wyatt thanked me for his new swimmin' trunks by instilling in me, a sudden need for Buttermilk Pie. Stat.

Hubs is in Miami doing a site survey for work so I sashayed downstairs to the kitchen and did what every level-headed pregnant lady does. Baked myself a Buttermilk Pie. At 10pm on a Monday night. Holy goodness.

Pre-prego days, I would have sliced a tiny sliver and savored every adequately portioned bite. Ha. I might have just eaten 1/4 of the pie. If that wasn't bad enough, I am now convinced that I need a Dr. Pepper. Glory be.

One, count it, one, more work day this week. Isn't that something!

And now for a little sneak peek into Nolan's Nursery:

Surprise find at Hobby Lobby...imagine the excitement when I found this little darlin!

Inspiration for nursery bath and paint color for nursery (green)

Super fun diaper basket

That about wraps it up for now. Emphasis on "for now".

Please pray for my friend Nat's mama...she was in a car accident today and is in the hospital recovering from a concussion and broken knee. Lots of love and prayers Nat!

Oh boy!

Mischief = Total Success.

Today was one of the absolute BEST days of my life.

We woke up this morning and promptly saddled up for a little jaunt over to First Impressions to sneak a peak at sweet Baby D.

Before we left I had a little pep talk with Baby. I reminded him/her that Mommy and Daddy would most appreciate his/her cooperation in this trip down loony tune lane.

That being said, within 2.2 seconds of the ultrasound wand being placed on my tummy, this is what we saw:

Hilarious. We didn't even need our super fabulous sonographer, Lauren, to tell us the results.

There he was, Baby Nolan Wyatt, in all his glory. I can't even describe the joy and excitement that instantly washed over us. We were speechless (well at least aside from the giggling as we marveled at Baby Nolan's obedience with our earlier pep talk).

In an instant our lives were a million times sweeter. Our hearts a million times fuller.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...we are just beside ourselves!

Let me just say, the 3D experience was worth every penny. It was incredible. To be completely honest I have always gotten a little weirded out when seeing 3D pictures of little ones. The concept just seems so strange. Almost like we are seeing something that we shouldn't quite physically be able to.

Upon seeing Baby Nolan, my opinion has totally changed. I know, I know, insert personal bias that comes along with becoming a parent :)

We savored every single minute of our session.

We adored seeing his little cheek bones and his little smile...

We marveled at his sweet little thumb sucking shenanigans..

We welled up with tears as we watched his little hand waving at us...

And we laughed uncontrollably when we saw him, well, flicking us off.

He is officially our child. Ha!



What an absolutely priceless day. Wouldn't trade these moments for anything in the world...

Over the Hump

16 Marvelous Reasons Why I Love The 16 Week Mark:

16. Although I have discovered the beauty of the all mighty Zofran, I have not had to use it in at least 4 days.
15. I can think about eating, eat an entire meal, finish and be ready to eat again.
14. I am no longer constantly re-adjusting the elastic waistbands on my maternity pants.
13. I have now been asked if I am "expecting" or just "putting on". Seriously?
12. I got stuck in the bathtub after soaking last night. Getting up and out appeared a lot easier in theory than in reality.
11. I have crossed the "it's too early" threshold and am now allowed to purchase fun accouterments for Baby D's nursery and bath. Beware: I have taken this to a whole new level.
10. I suddenly require minor assistance to roll over in the mornings. Husband thinks this is hilarious.
9. To assist with rolling over-we have invited the following item into bed with us:

I feel we will soon be inviting the ever fun body pillow. Skiddleedoo.
8. I have sprouted a belly button hair. Just one.
7. We are mere weeks away from determining the sex of this sweet baby. (Perhaps sooner if we squeeze in a sneak peak at the 3D ultrasound place. Mischief brewing? I think so.)
6. I can still tie my own shoes. No assistance needed in that department.
5. Hormonal weepiness has turned into bouts of uncontrollable laughter. It is fabulously ridiculous. 4. I have started calculating maternity leave and return-to-work plans.
3. I can look at my toothbrush without dry heaving. This, to me, is remarkable.
2. I got to raise my hand when asked "Let me see a show of hands all you mommies out there" at Monterrey's Sunday night during the strange one-man-band man's rendition of "Wheels on the Bus". I beamed.
1. There are only 24 short weeks until we get to hold our precious little one in our arms.

Between the Lines: Crabby-Style

So I'm kind of crabby with this blogging business. Here's why: I started this blog because I was losing my vow of keeping a 5-year diary in honor of my sweet Mama Potts with the whole "you have to write every single day" deal. I decided that online blogging is so 2009 and 5 year diaries are simply a thing of the past. Keep the dream alive, modern-style I thought.

The problem with online blogging is that although I suppose the very nature of an online blog is to post your thoughts in a public forum to be read by other people, I don't really know if I embrace the idea of that whole heartedly. I'm really hung up on this and can't seem to shake it. I have all of these crazy fears associated with blogging. For instance: The fear of people reading something and being offended. The fear of mis-typing something. The fear of being too open and honest. The fear of coming across as shallow...on and on it goes...

Regardless, I began my blogging days with a disclaimer. I thought that would clear the air, but no matter what, I write every post thinking "what if someone reads this and thinks I am silly?" or "what if someone reads this and gets upset?" or "what if someone reads this and thinks I am a horrible person?" or "what if someone reads this and finds out that I frequently end sentences in prepositions?". Horror of horrors.

Like tonight, for instance, I learned that in my "All in a Name" baby post, I totally blogged about my sweet, sweet friend's choice of baby names for her 2nd son. SO EMBARRASSED. SOOO sorry Gidge. Not having this conversation in some time and being overcome by the SSA's list of adorable 2008 baby names, I just threw "Parker" on the list. At the time of making my silly list, I was doing just that; making a silly list. I was not thinking and inevitably stepped on a stick of dynamite. What's worse is that I didn't even catch myself. So in my fear of offending someone, I did just that. Sadness.

Anyway, I enjoy blogging, I really do. I am absolutely addicted to reading other people's blogs. I love learning about what people are up to; the latest and greatest. I love how easy it is to document all beautiful, yet simple (and sometimes forgettable) happenings of life. I love that you can upload pictures within seconds and look back on precious memories with the click of a button. I love how you can keep in touch with the people you love by simply hitting "publish post". I love including the nitty gritty details that are waaay too much for the measly 4 lines dictated by the 5 year diary.

What I don't like is how I feel when I call an old friend and realize that we know everything that happened to each other during the week without getting to talk face to face, or how I feel like I have to sensor things so that I don't offend people, or how I feel like I have to write about something "read-worthy" even when I'm just in the mood to ramble about my favorite trashy TV show.

I do love you Mr. Blog, but do your pros outweigh your cons?

Do you see the dilemma I'm in here? Do any of you struggle with these same thoughts or am I out in left field with the whole worrying-about-what-everyone-thinks while blogging complex?

I picked back up my 5 year diary tonight and counted the number of days I have missed since starting this blog. 85. It's almost been a year since Mama Potts passed away and I took on the challenge of carrying on her legacy of journaling. I am at a cross roads. I will either a) get over it and stop being so blogodramatic, b) take this blog offline and keep on keepin' on without the silly pressure I am putting on myself, or c) pick back up the 5 year pen and paper challenge.

I'll keep you posted. (Ha. "Posted" No pun intended).

In other news, Baby D and I have had quite the week. We landed ourselves in the hospital with Virus of Doom 2009. Dreadful. It struck Monday night and got the best of us by Tuesday morning. Thank heavens for IV drugs and fluids. Thank heavens for Zofran. Thank heavens for husbands who take the very best care of you despite your matted down hair, sweat covered pjs, and un-brushed teeth (see there, too much detail for the blogosphere or do I go ahead with it??)

Regardless, we're officially 15 weeks now--yayayaya! No picture this week (didn't I paint a lovely picture with the whole matted hair, fuzzy sweater teeth comment above!?) Settling into the 2nd trimester and LOVING it (minus the whole spontaneous hospital trip ordeal). We are counting down the days until we discover if we are having a Nolan/Cooper/Tyler/Jackson/Carter/Mason or Harper/Kennedy/Riley/Madison...and we couldn't be more excited!

Now, please excuse my crabby bloggy self.

All in a Name

Just lil' ol Baby D dropping in to say "hey ya'll"!

Chris loves this pic because he thinks it looks like Baby D is headbutting the placenta. I love this picture because a) it looks as though Baby D has finally grown into his or her head b) the EDD stamp reminds us that we made it through the 1st trimester (whoooo!), and c) it was taken seconds before Baby D looked up and started clapping his or her hands in jubilation that we were sneaking a peak at him or her.

Speaking of he/she/him/her/his/her/it, our quest to find the perfect baby name has spiraled into hilariousness. We thought we had it all figured out. We had our solid boy name. We had our solid girl name. Then we decided to broaden our horizons and peruse baby names just for kicks. We are now officially dazed and confused. Here's hoping something jumps out at us or else we will be those parents being discharged from the hospital with Baby John or Jane Doe. Thankfully Hubs just reminded me (for the 3rd time this week) that we have 26 weeks to figure these kind of things out :)

What cracks me up is how we women feel the need to "own" baby names 15 years before we carry the very children we will be naming. You know you're guilty of it. I am. We all are. Seriously, step on someones baby name and you might as well step on a stick of dynamite.

My "owned" names have always been Nolan Wyatt (for a boy) and Harper Grace (for a girl). I briefly "owned" Jonah for a boy and Addison for a girl but both have since been taken. I'm recovering. I am also "leasing" the following lists of names just for kicks.

Boys, in no particular order, with accompanying comments from the peanut gallery:

Nolan Wyatt (Nolan has always been Chris' top pick; Wyatt was my sweet Mama Potts' maiden name)
Jackson (Chris loves the idea of having a little "Jack"; I grew up in a city called "Jackson"...both good points...)
Tyler (I like names spelled with 'y's, what can I say?)
Mason (another contribution from Hubs--he's all into history and has researched the Free Masons with passion over the past few years; I like it because I drink my sweet tea from a mason jar, no other way)
Carter (how stinkin' cute is "Carter"?? And like 'y's, I have a thing for 'er's' on the ends on names)
Cooper (LOVE this one, it's another "er" name, and the double 'o's are super fun too...only downside is that he might be nicknamed "Pooper" and that's just bad)
Parker (and again...the 'er' gets me)
Logan (I guess we could potentially mark this one off the list because we don't have a solid reason for liking it between the two of us, but isn't it cute??)

Girls:

Harper Grace (Harper is a family name that I just adore; Grace has always been my girl middle name...there's not another name in my mind that sums up what having a little one is all about...)
Riley (our girl version of "Tyler"--love the 'y'!)
Madison (because I would love, love, love to have a little girl and call her "Maddi Paddi" and it humors Hubs fascination with president names)
Kennedy (goes great with "Grace" and again humors the whole presidential ruckus)
Isabella (lots of cute nickname possibilities...always important)
Ella (rhymes with "Bella" which is short for "Isabella", both of which make me happy)
Madelyn (could totally be a little "Maddi Paddi" as well! That, coupled with the 'y' makes this one twice as much a possibility.)

To be honest, Chris has a TON of other names that didn't quite make it onto the mutual baby name list. His thing for Presidents' names dictates his list of top favs. Included, but not listed above, are: Theodore, Abraham, Woodrow, and Franklin. I ask, why not "Ulysses", "Millard", or "Grover" then? Thankfully we agree on Kennedy, Carter, Madison, Tyler, and Jackson. I picked them because they are adorable. He thought I picked them because they are presidents' names. Riiight. Score!

Votes? Comments? Ideas? As I sign off I can't help but wonder, did I step on any sticks of dynamite by publishing our lists??!